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Google may have signed on to President Trump\u2019s toothless power pledge<\/a>, but it\u2019s clear the company started working months ago on a framework to power its data centers.<\/p>\n On Thursday, Google said it will work with Michigan utility DTE to add 2.7 gigawatts of \u201cnew resources\u201d in suburban Detroit to power a new data center in the region. Some specifics are still fuzzy at this point, but the deal mimics one signed last month with Xcel Energy<\/a> to build a data center in Minnesota. This is how Google will develop new capacity for its future data centers.<\/p>\n The new plan includes 1.6 gigawatts of solar power, 400 megawatts of four-hour energy storage, 50 megawatts of long-duration energy storage, and 300 megawatts of \u201cadditional clean resources,\u201d which is a squishy way of saying anything from wind and hydro to nuclear and geothermal.\u00a0<\/p>\n TechCrunch sent Google\u2019s PR people a number of questions, and while they responded with some details, it\u2019s clear there\u2019s a lot to the proposal that either isn\u2019t fleshed out or isn\u2019t fully public yet. To wit: does \u201cclean resources\u201d include natural gas? We haven\u2019t received a reply on that one yet.<\/p>\n The remaining 350 megawatts of the 2.7 GW deal will be covered by demand response, which is when large electricity users curtail their use for brief periods of time. What shape that takes remains to be seen. Google may be looking for companies that are willing to dial back their electricity needs at certain times, or it will turn off its own data centers when the grid is strained.<\/p>\n The DTE deal will also use Google\u2019s Clean Transition Tariff, which it has been refining over the past year or so. The tariff was previously used in Google\u2019s deal with Xcel Energy. It\u2019s intended to allow Google to pay a premium to specify the types of power it wants deployed while also encouraging utilities to incorporate such technologies into their long-range planning. Previous instruments like power purchase agreements were often treated by utilities as one-offs.<\/p>\n Google also said it is introducing a $10 million Energy Impact Fund intended to reduce utility bills, including by insulating homes. It sounds a lot like energy efficiency programs run by utilities, just with Google\u2019s name on it. Whether $10 million is enough to assuage regular people\u2019s concerns about rising electricity prices remains to be seen.<\/p>\n Techcrunch event<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSan Francisco, CA<\/span> This is the second \u201cbring your own power\u201d package that Google has touted, though it\u2019s unlikely to be it\u2019s last. In many ways, it\u2019s not that different from the way the company has operated in the past. Sure, the tariff is relatively new, but Google has been investing in or developing new generating capacity ever since it vowed<\/a> seven years ago to use 100% carbon free power. <\/p>\n The difference is that those projects tended to be announced on their own timelines. Now, we\u2019re seeing the inverse \u2014 power projects that are in the works get announced along with the new data center. Smart marketing or something more? We\u2019ll know in a few years.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOctober 13-15, 2026<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n